The Government is bracing itself for revelations about the extent of New Zealand's role in the Five Eyes spy network as author Nicky Hager prepares to unveil his latest book.I can think of a number of subjects it could be about, but surveillance is the obvious one. And if so, its likely to be highly damaging to the government and the deep state. Which invites the obvious question: will National try and have it banned as an "election advertisement"? Remember, according to the courts books aren't journalism...
Hager is keeping silent on the subject of the book but Prime Minister John Key yesterday said he could not rule out the likelihood that Hager had obtained leaked documents from former American defence contractor Edward Snowden.
The book is being released in Wellington today and Hager was not distributing advance copies. He also refused to discuss the subject.
Meanwhile, if you're attending the book launch tonight (17:00 at Unity in Wellington), you can probably play a fun game of "spot the spook". But please remember that thanks to Robert Muldoon, its a criminal offence to call a spy a spy, so be careful with your photos.